By the October of that year, Mum and Aidan were happily working together in the Factory. I was enjoying being back at school after the summer and Isla had settled into nursery. Michelle had managed to convince Mum to send her for four days a week instead of five so that she got to spend a day with Mum and if Mum had an absolute emergency, then Michelle was around to help her out, as she was usually around with Rosie too.
"Bye my Orlie girl, have a good day at school." Mum said as she kissed my cheek as I stood at the front door of the flat putting my blazer on. Mum held Isla on her hip, both of them still in their pyjamas.
"Bye Mum, bye Islie. I'm just going over to the factory to do my Maths homework with Aidan first." I said before kissing Mum and Isla back and leaving the flat. I didn't start lessons until 10 on a Thursday morning and I'd told my tutor that I had a doctor's appointment so she wouldn't question why I wasn't in for registration. I walked across to the factory, stopping at Roy's for a coffee on route before making my way into the office at Underworld, where Aidan was already sat at his desk.
"I had to do a double take a minute then. You look so like your Mum." He said as I sat down at her desk, put my coffee down on the table and got my maths book out.
"Thanks, you sound like Michelle, and Grandma and Grandad, I get it all the time. Isla is going the same way too so good luck to all of you." I said. He laughed.
"Oh goodness. Right let's get on with this maths, did you say it was algebra?" he asked, and I nodded.
It must have been about an hour later; I was finishing the last part of my maths homework at Mum's desk when the door of the office opened and Mum stood with Isla on her hip.
"You're not supposed to be here today." I said to her, as Isla launched herself out of Mum's arms and I took her.
"Excuse me, you're not supposed to be here either. I've just come to pick my car keys up, thank you very much Orla Connor." Mum said as she rummaged around in the drawers of her desk. "Are you nearly done? I'm taking this little one into town to get her first pair of shoes. Do you want me to drop you at school on the way?" she asked.
"Yes please, I literally need to finish this last question." I said before returning to my books, still balancing Isla on my knee as Mum checked in on Aidan and the factory.
"Mrs Connor, have you got a minute?" Beth said as she knocked at the door and opened it.
"Can't it wait?" Mum said as she got her things together and went to take Isla from me.
"No, it can't." a man's voice said as he pushed past Beth. I looked up from my homework as I didn't recognise the voice at all. When I looked at his face, I didn't recognise that either, but I did think that there was something about the younger woman standing next to him that I had seen before. Beth shouted at the man for being rude, as Mum and Aidan looked up to realise who it was.
"Bye Beth, close the door." Mum said, as she let go on Isla and put her handbag down on the desk beside me, resting one hand on my shoulder.
"Dad, what you are doing here?" Aidan said from the other side of the room. It was then I realised who the man was and also realised why I recognised the younger woman too.
"Johnny Connor." Mum said as she moved towards him. "How long's it been? And Kate too." she asked as the two of them hugged.
"Carla," he said affectionately. "How are you? I heard from Barry and Helen that you had two little beauties now, who are these two?"
"Aww, these are my girls, Orla and Isla." Mum said, pointing to each of us in turn.
"You are both the spitting image of your mother." He said, smiling.
"You really didn't think you'd get away with this did you?" Kate said interrupting Johnny. Mum and I both turned to the three of them. Johnny's facial expression went from happy to angry in a very short amount of time.
"I've called you upteen times, did you think you could hide from me forever?" he said to Aidan.
"I can't do this now." Aidan said.
"You've got no choice; I want my money back." Johnny said.
"What money?" Mum asked, the two of them turned to her as she looked quite worried by that point.
"You can't. It's tied up." Aidan told them.
"You are kidding. In what?" Kate asked.
"Hang on a minute, you did a deal with me, with his money?" Mum asked. The room fell silent as Mum, Aidan and Johnny all looked at each other blankly. "Orla, take your sister over to Michelle's and then get yourself to school, apparently I've got things to deal with here." I did as she asked and quickly gathered up my maths book and took Isla across the road.
"So, who is it?" Michelle asked when I tried to explain the situation.
"Johnny and Kate Connor. Aidan's Dad and his sister." I told her.
"Ah yeah, my uncle Johnny, he's Grandad's cousin." She explained. "And why's he rocked up now?"
"Something about Aidan using his money to invest in the factory. I think he used it to buy Peter out." I said.
"Oh no he didn't." Michelle said.
"Well, I don't know for sure but that's what it sounded like. Mum was quite adamant for Isla and I to get out of there. Whatever is happening over there isn't going to be pretty."
"No, you're right there." She said. I raised my eyebrow at her, knowing that there was more to the story. "The last thing your Mum needs, being the strong-minded person she is, is someone equally as strong minded, like Johnny Connor, telling her what to do."
"She's never been good at being told what to do." I said.
"Yeah, I know, which is why it's such a recipe for disaster." Michelle said. There was a long pause in the room. "Aren't you supposed to be at school anyway?" she asked.
"Yeah, I was doing my maths homework with Aidan and then Mum said she'd take me on her way into town. She was gonna get Isla her first pair of shoes and then this all kicked off, and well now, it's nearly break time." I told her.
"Well, get yourself over to Streetcars and I'll give Steve a ring. He'll take you down now. Then after school, come back here and I'll give you and Islie your tea, no doubt Carla will still be in the factory." She said. I nodded before saying goodbye to Isla and walking across the road to streetcars, where Steve was waiting to give me a lift to school.
When I finished school, I got on the bus home and text Mum to ask if she was alright. She didn't reply. I decided to listen to what Michelle said earlier and go to the pub when I got off the bus. I walked across the road and opened the front door, to find Mum standing at the bar, Isla in one hand and a glass of wine in the other.
"Hey Orabelle, you get in alright?" Michelle asked from the bar. I nodded as I walked towards Mum and took Isla out of her arm. Mum briefly kissed my cheek before continuing her conversation with Johnny and Aidan.
"My tutor asked to see me at lunch, but I just said the doctors took longer than I thought and she was fine. Hello Islie bug, have you been good?" I asked.
"A little angel as per usual." Michelle said smiling to Kate who stood beside her. "Orlie do you remember Kate?" she asked as I walked towards her, still with my school bag on my shoulder.
"No, I knew Johnny had a daughter called Kate but I didn't recognise you when I saw you this morning." I told them both.
"Well, I think that the last time I saw you, you were the same age as this little one." Kate said, trying to hold onto Isla's hand, but she was having none of it. She definitely held the stubbornness gene of Connor women. I chatted to Kate for a while longer before taking Isla into the back to find Michelle making tea in the kitchen. Isla sat down on the floor with a few toys and the TV going in the background while I went into the kitchen with Michelle
"What's the deal then? Mum looks like she's been slapped round the face with a wet fish. She looks well grumpy." I said to her as I sat on the counter next to her.
"Oh Orla, don't ask me. I haven't got a clue what's going on." She said.
"Do you think Mum's life will ever be plain sailing? Do you think I'll ever have a day where I don't constantly worry about whether she's happy or not?"
"Hey, you know your Mum, wherever she goes trouble tends to follow, or vice versa, I'm not entirely sure." She said and I giggled. "She's just had a lot going on the past few months that's all and you have done an amazing job of supporting her."
"Months? Chelle, it feels like it's been years." I said, as Michelle pulled me into hug her.
"What has?" Mum's voice said from the doorway of the kitchen. Michelle and I both looked up to her.
"Orla was just saying that she felt like you'd been through so much for the past few years that you deserved a break." Michelle told her.
"Well, I did think my ears were burning." Mum said.
"Oh Carla, it wasn't like that. Orla's worried about you that's all." Michelle explained. Mum took a deep breath.
"I'm sorry, you're right, I'm so sorry." She said to us both. "It's just your flaming family Chelle, now, wherever I go they're there and I am rubbish at being told what to do, specially by someone like Johnny Connor."
"I know love, and I'm sorry they seem to pop up at every corner, but they are there to help and at the end of the day, you still own 60% of that business, which is more than either of them. You are still the boss." Michelle said, pulling Mum into a hug. Mum put her arm around me as they both stood there.
"As long as I've got you." Mum said. "Right, you, let's get you home, that homework isn't gonna do itself."
"Michelle's supposed to be making my tea." I told her.
"Oh, ok, well, I'll take your sister home, put her to bed and you can get on with your homework while Michelle finishes your tea." She said, before kissing Michelle and I on the cheek and going into the back room to collect Isla.
After I'd had tea with Michelle and done all of my homework, I collected all my stuff and walked back home from the pub. I walked in the front door to find Mum wrapped in her dressing gown sat on the sofa, glass of wine in hand, with Nick sat beside her.
"Hello, sorry to interrupt." I said as I shut the front door behind me.
"That's alright Orlie, how was your tea?" Mum asked.
"Good, I've finished my homework too, so you don't need to nag me about that." I said.
"I don't nag." Mum snapped as Nick and I both laughed.. There was a pause in the room.
"Hi Nick, how are you?" I asked.
"Hi Orla, I'm great thank you, how are you?" he said.
"I'm good thanks, as long as I know you're looking after my Mum." I told him.
"I wouldn't think of ever doing anything else." He said. The three of us smiled at each other.
"Good, I'm off to bed." I said to them both. I went in my room, shutting the door behind me.
"She's just your mini me, isn't she?" Nick said to Mum and she laughed. I giggled a bit too.